Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[Bastet]

21 minutes ago, isalicat said:

And I hate litter boxes (and I think cats hate them too, frankly).

Riley is an indoor-only cat since she's never shown an interest in going outside and she's way too skittish when spooked for it to be safe even if she wanted to go out.  But Maddie and Baxter were allowed supervised outdoor time because they were freakishly obedient (they virtually never left the yard, and if they did get the urge and jump over a wall, I'd say, "Come back here," and they would!)  Baxter would pee outside, but come back in and use the litter box if he had to poop.  Maddie found the whole outdoor bathroom concept undignified and would only do her business in the box.

My parents' cat Bandit is allowed out in the yard during certain hours (he has idiopathic cystitis caused by stress, and if he's strictly confined indoors, it flares up), and he's the same way - he'll pee outside, but come barreling down the hill and into the garage or house to use one of the boxes if he has to poop.

Their cat Chester can only go outside on a leash, as he started going across the street, plus he's so damn small now (with cancer eating most of his nutrients) he could be carried away by a hawk or owl.  When he had the same privileges as Bandit, he loved to poop outside, but would only pee in the box.

They're funny little critters that way - like cats with two boxes who will use one for pee and one for poop.

Growing up, our cats were always indoor-outdoor (no free access to outdoors, and never allowed out from an hour before dusk through the early morning hours because of coyotes, but allowed outside during the day if someone was home) and one, Yeager, loved to help fertilize plants -- if we dug a hole to plant something, he came along and tinkled in it.

Edited April 8, 2021 by Bastet

[Scarlett45]

Cosmo got to try out his new rain coat in public today. He is fine with the coat, not so much with the hood part. He was more chill being outside when it was raining with it on. I bribed him with some dehydrated beef treats while putting it on and off. 

[NotthebadVictoria]

Hey Folks, new here and need advice. 
one of my pupps passed today leaving his brother behind. It was a complete surprise, he passed in his sleep and we are all shocked and grieving hard. My question is, how do I help his brother? They were from the same litter and together their entire lives, they are 12. So 

[Scarlett45]

3 hours ago, NotthebadVictoria said:

Hey Folks, new here and need advice. 
one of my pupps passed today leaving his brother behind. It was a complete surprise, he passed in his sleep and we are all shocked and grieving hard. My question is, how do I help his brother? They were from the same litter and together their entire lives, they are 12. So 

I’m so sorry for the loss of your dog! I am glad though he didn’t differ and went peacefully. 
 

I have had litter mates (cats though)- I wouldn’t wash any of the dog bedding etc for a while, so that the scent can slowly fade away. I would also keep an eye out and make sure your boy left behind is eating, drinking, toileting as normal. He will be grieving. As sad as I am to say this, siblings often pass close together. Your boy may live a lot longer, but he may not without his brother. Do you have any other pets in the home? When Scarlett died (left on my photo) I was expecting Mr Norris (on the right) to follow quickly. But he had Charlie (orange tabby) and made it other six years. It wasn’t until Charlie died at 15 last March (kidney failure) and Mr Norris followed a few months later at 20. 
 

Your boy may be extra needy and clingy for a while as he adjusts. Again I am so sorry for your loss. 

[Scout Finch]

Has anyone dealt with their kitty having renal failure? My 14-year-old Willow was recently diagnosed and it's been difficult to communicate with the new vet, who has taken over the practice from the previous one who was so wonderful. Very difficult to get her on the phone. One of the primary things I'm worried about is that I know from two friends who have had cats with renal failure that they've suddenly died very horrible and painful deaths. Is this always the case? Does it only happen when their organs are shutting down? The vet assistant said there's nothing I can give Willow to hasten it and I asked only because the thought of her screaming in agony until I can get her to the emergency vet clinic to be euthanized is upsetting.

She's still eating but lately she's been more ravenous. Also the expected drinking lots of water and peeing a lot. They can't really say what stage she's in. She's so bony. 😞 When she started losing weight about a month and a half ago I thought it was probably due to hyperthyroidism which my previous two elderly cats had. At least that was controlled by medication and they lived to be 17 and 19, respectively. Nope. And no medication to control this with.

I've been playing veterinary diet food roulette and she likes Hills canned food but not the dry, did not like either form of Royal Canin, and now I'm trying her on the Purina NF. Just about to transition up to half that and half the regular Purina One she's been getting for a while. Just making sure she eats as much and as often as she wants is the most important thing. At the same time, trying to limit the big 22 lb. orange cat (that's Scout in the photo) because I can't really feed them separately. The higher-fat vet diet food is the last thing he needs!

I know there's probably other questions I have but it's in the wee hours of the morning and I really should go to bed.

Edited April 9, 2021 by Scout Finch

[Bastet]

Sorry to hear that, @Scout Finch.  CKD is very common in cats, so there is a lot of information out there, and this site is a good repository, but that can be very overwhelming; I suggest trying to digest it in chunks.  Start with "Just Diagnosed?  Click Here".  The "Key Issues" page is even shorter, honing in on what you can do to make your cat feel better.

The most important thing is getting your cat to eat, so of course you want to feed the lowest-phosphorus food she'll eat (hopefully without having to resort to one inappropriately low in protein), but a kidney-friendly diet is of no use if the cat won't eat enough of it to meet her basic nutritional needs.  So don't stress out too much over which food.

If hydration is an issue, subQ fluids can be a big help.

I don't want to rattle off too many other things and overwhelm you more than you are, so take a look at that site when you feel up for it.  You'll learn the secondary conditions to look out for and things that may stall the progression of the disease.

And, no, they very much do not all suddenly crash and die agonizing deaths!  I'm sorry you've had two friends experience that, but please don't add more worry to your life by assuming that's going to happen to Willow, too.  Generally it's like with any progressive disease; in the final stage, quality of life decreases, and at some point it's time to decide to let go.

My cat Maddie lived for seven years after her CKD diagnosis, with her kidney values mostly staying in stage one, sometimes stage two and occasionally normal; when she died of an unrelated disease, her kidney values were right at the high end of normal.

[bosawks]

Yup......

[ABay]

Landshark!

[Scout Finch]

This is still my favorite when an animal is dressed as a shark. 

 

[bosawks]

In case anyone was wondering who my dog was named after....

Edited April 10, 2021 by bosawks

[ginger90]

15 minutes ago, bosawks said:

In case anyone was wondering who my dog was named after....

If I had a son, which I did not, his name would have been Bryce. So I find this quite cute. 😁

[SoMuchTV]

20 minutes ago, bosawks said:

In case anyone was wondering who my dog was named after....

I don't know who Harper is, but shout-out to your slippers.  I got something similar for my daughter in honor of her Black Lab(-ish) dog.  Is your Harper okay with the cat slippers?

[Moose135]

On 4/2/2021 at 3:14 PM, Scarlett45 said:

My Mom got Cosmo a rain coat. We had our first rain a few weeks ago and he wasnt pleased. He did let me put it on him, but I think more treats will be needed to make this a regular thing when its raining.

 

Jake has that same raincoat! He's only worn it once or twice, but doesn't seem to mind it.

[Scarlett45]

47 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

 

Jake has that same raincoat! He's only worn it once or twice, but doesn't seem to mind it.

How nice. I think it’s a keeper. He wore it today and was fine with it. 

[MargeGunderson]

Cosmo looks quite jaunty!

[MargeGunderson]

I bought a small pet igloo for the girls at IKEA:

Parker loves it

Edited April 11, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[raven]

[bilgistic]

15 hours ago, MargeGunderson said:

I bought a small pet igloo for the girls at IKEA:

Parker loves it

Parker is beautiful!

I got Erin (Little Girl) a bed—it was really for both her and her mom, let's be honest—for her birthday on April 4, and she's lain(?) in it approximately five minutes. Meanwhile, months ago, my boyfriend put an old bathmat on top of two stacked storage tubs and it is their favorite place to lay. I hate the storage tub "cat tree"! I was hoping the new bed could replace the janky storage tubs.

They also have a cat tree and a window seat in the bedroom that they use.

[Scout Finch]

The aforementioned Willow is the tortoiseshell and Scout is the big Maine C***. 

[Suzn]

On 4/2/2021 at 2:14 PM, Scarlett45 said:

My Mom got Cosmo a rain coat. We had our first rain a few weeks ago and he wasnt pleased. He did let me put it on him, but I think more treats will be needed to make this a regular thing when its raining.

Cosmo looks adorable in his rain coat!  He'll will be glad to stay dry.

[supposebly]

9 hours ago, bilgistic said:

I hate the storage tub "cat tree"! I was hoping the new bed could replace the janky storage tubs.

The top shelf in the closet where I keep bed linens, towels, and my winter coats belongs to the cats. Unfortunately, they climb there over the bed linens and towels. Guess what I do when I change my sheets or need a new towel. They do use their assigned beds. Months after I bought them and knitted a blanket for them.

Edited April 12, 2021 by supposebly

[Callietwo]

On 4/9/2021 at 6:25 AM, Scout Finch said:

Has anyone dealt with their kitty having renal failure?

I'm so sorry, I know this is a stressful situation for you.  I had a 20 year old kitty that had CKD and it definitely can be challenging particularly when you're not working with a responsive vet.  

I will say that doing daily subQ with mine helped her live almost a full year after diagnosis which at her age was so surprising!  I won't lie, it took a few times for me to learn how to do it properly without both me & my sweet Jubie (short for Jubilee) crying.  I learned that for her, a smaller diameter needle, though it took longer, was easier for me to do without hurting her. 

And though the vet showed me how to do the subQ, it was not shown to me on my cat but theirs and their cat was already used to having it done.  If your vet shows you, have them show you on your own cat (if you can get the an appt with your vet, of course).  I then spent hours & hours watching how to do it on Youtube.  

Jubie seemed to understand she'd feel better after she had it done and cooperated completed.  Once we got the hang of it all, I would just pick her up, plop her on the towel on the counter and she'd just sit there and wouldn't even try to jump down until I said it was okay.   

Good luck! 

[Scout Finch]

59 minutes ago, Callietwo said:

I'm so sorry, I know this is a stressful situation for you.  I had a 20 year old kitty that had CKD and it definitely can be challenging particularly when you're not working with a responsive vet.  

I will say that doing daily subQ with mine helped her live almost a full year after diagnosis which at her age was so surprising!  I won't lie, it took a few times for me to learn how to do it properly without both me & my sweet Jubie (short for Jubilee) crying.  I learned that for her, a smaller diameter needle, though it took longer, was easier for me to do without hurting her. 

And though the vet showed me how to do the subQ, it was not shown to me on my cat but theirs and their cat was already used to having it done.  If your vet shows you, have them show you on your own cat (if you can get the an appt with your vet, of course).  I then spent hours & hours watching how to do it on Youtube.  

Jubie seemed to understand she'd feel better after she had it done and cooperated completed.  Once we got the hang of it all, I would just pick her up, plop her on the towel on the counter and she'd just sit there and wouldn't even try to jump down until I said it was okay.   

Good luck! 

Thanks to you and Bastet for the advice. She's drinking a lot on her own so I'm wondering when I'll know that she'll need subQ, too.

[Callietwo]

3 minutes ago, Scout Finch said:

Thanks to you and Bastet for the advice. She's drinking a lot on her own so I'm wondering when I'll know that she'll need subQ, too.

I wish I could remember how we knew- I think it was with tests from the Vet that said it was something we could try to help her feel better but that was about 8 years ago now and I just don't remember.  Sorry.  

[Scarlett45]

Cosmo's morning walk, and the ducks that made it interesting. It was odd to see ducks so far from the lake- a few weeks ago there was a GIANT PUDDLE in the park that looked like a small pond from the melting snow, but haven't seen ducks since then. 

[Callietwo]

I love playing with Snapchat filters and my kitties... anyone else?  
 

Bella is on the left & Max on the right 😻😻

 

Edited April 12, 2021 by Callietwo

[Scout Finch]

In the area of where I work there are several flocks of geese moving around in about a three-mile radius. The primary thoroughfare is a four-lane highway and I don't know how many times they cross it but I see it about once a year when I'm going to or from work. All four lanes of traffic stop as a flock takes its sweet time crossing and I can almost swear that the leader is full of attitude and looks defiant. "You shall not pass!" Even if I'm running late to work or would really like to get home, it always makes me smile to see everyone stopping, no horns are beeped at them, no one barrels past when the last goose has barely cleared a lane. All that matters is the geese being allowed to safely cross and it's just such a fundamental moment of humanity that it always elevates my mood!

Yesterday, I was trying to find something over on my side of town and encountered a lone goose in a parking lot. It doesn't seem weird at all to me to talk to it, like: "Did your friends leave you? Hope you find them!" I'm also the person who doesn't tend to wave back at kids in a car, however, if there's a dog I always wave at it! It's not going to matter to the dog but I can't help it!

 

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, Scout Finch said:

She's drinking a lot on her own so I'm wondering when I'll know that she'll need subQ, too.

If she's drinking a lot and peeing a lot, she is probably at or close to the point where she can't keep up on her own, and supplemental hydration would be helpful.  But more hydration than is needed can cause heart and/or lung problems - there can be too much of a good thing - so you don't want to start too soon or give too much at a time/give it too frequently.

The existence and severity of dehydration is detected not by any one test or physical factor, but by putting all the signs together.  Your vet should be able to tell you whether the test results (kidney values, electrolyte levels, total protein, and red blood cell count & percentage) indicate dehydration, but I know you've experienced difficulty getting good information from your vet.  Do you at least have a report of the test results?

Things to look for physically are:

- The skin test.  Pull up the skin in between her shoulder blades and let go of it.  Does it plop right back down, or does it stay up, like she has a furry pup tent up there?  If the latter, that a typical indicator of dehydration.  If it comes back down slowly, she can probably use a little extra hydration if other things also point to that.

- The gum test.  Pull her lip up to expose her gums and check its color and texture (obviously, you cannot perform this test if it will cause your cat to bite you, but usually they just wiggle a little).  If pink and moist, all good.  If on the pale side and a little sticky, that's probably a sign she needs extra hydration.  If pale and dry, that's typical of dehydration.

I know you said it's difficult getting the new vet on the phone; do they accept emails? 

Edited April 12, 2021 by Bastet

[SuprSuprElevated]

54 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Cosmo's morning walk, and the ducks that made it interesting. It was odd to see ducks so far from the lake- a few weeks ago there was a GIANT PUDDLE in the park that looked like a small pond from the melting snow, but haven't seen ducks since then. 

 

 

Time for the nesting pairs to locate their places.

[Scarlett45]

11 minutes ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

Time for the nesting pairs to locate their places.

I didnt know that! Thank you.

[tiftgirl]

1 hour ago, Scout Finch said:

 so I'm wondering when I'll know that she'll need subQ, too.

@Bastet already answered about signs of hydration or lack of better than I can, but, I did want to say if you don't feel comfortable administering the subQ fluids or try it and have difficulty, please don't fret or stress about it.  When it was determined it was time to start them for my Shana the vet said they could teach me but they wanted to do the first one.  It took 3 of them.  So since she was not agreeable to this no one thought I should try it at home alone.  I'm not sure how our vet's prices compare to else where, but, it was 7.00 for them to do it.  Of course that isn't counting the actual bag of fluid which I kept and we took back and forth with us, that was about 30.00 and lasted about 10 treatments.  Eventually she got used to it and one of the techs could do it alone, but, by that time she was used to them doing it, so, we just stayed with doing it that way. 

[Nicmar]

My Blue heeler Stella is going to have both of her eyes removed because of Glaucoma, and ocular edema and luxation of the lens. 😟

[tiftgirl]

Just now, Nicmar said:

My Blue heeler Stella is going to have both of her eyes removed because of Glaucoma, and ocular edema and luxation of the lens. 😟

I am so sorry @Nicmar.  I cannot imagine how stressful that is.  I hope there are resources, your vet or otherwise that can help you both with adjusting.  I wish you both the best of luck with the surgery and recovery.

[Scarlett45]

3 minutes ago, Nicmar said:

My Blue heeler Stella is going to have both of her eyes removed because of Glaucoma, and ocular edema and luxation of the lens. 😟

Oh no, poor baby lady. I know blind dogs can live very full lives, are there any special things you need to do to help her acclimate to life without sight?

[EighteenTwelve]

Lily has CKD, and basically went on a hunger strike for a while because she didn't like the Purina NF kidney diet.  I had no choice about that at the time, because it's the only one that doesn't have corn in it, and Snip was allergic to corn.  I was feeding Snip the same thing as Lily, since my vet said that if she was a senior cat, she had CKD anyway, even though we never formally diagnosed it.  (She had it all right, based on the contrast between her litterbox output and Quirk's.) 

Lily is now happily plowing through two cans of Royal Canin Renal Support T per day.  She does drink a fair amount and pee a lot, but we do blood tests every six months and her kidney values are stable on the low end of bad, so my vet isn't worried about that.

 

 

[Nicmar]

15 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

Oh no, poor baby lady. I know blind dogs can live very full lives, are there any special things you need to do to help her acclimate to life without sight?

Well right now she doesn't have any sight. I am thinking about getting one of those Muffins Halo it helps with dogs who blind navigate without bumping into everything.

[Scarlett45]

10 minutes ago, Nicmar said:

Well right now she doesn't have any sight. I am thinking about getting one of those Muffins Halo it helps with dogs who blind navigate without bumping into everything.

Oh I see, she lost her sight already. Does she bump into things now? Youre taking such good care of her.

[Nicmar]

24 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I had a horrible migraine last night in the evening, so I laid down on the futon.  The big cat that won't protect himself from Cubby likes to sleep on the futon top when I have the futon adjusted to the seated position (L).  In any case, I had a hot washcloth on my head and Cubby decided to come up and lie down next to me.   I rolled over and then Cubby hopped up on top of me.  The big cat decide to roll over where he was laying on top of the futon.  He rolled right off of the backside of the futon and crashed into the cardboard boxes that both cats like to play on.  The big cat (23lbs) crushed the boxes.  The noise that the big guy made by falling scared the crap out of Cubby, so he decided to jump off me and go hide.  He clawed me pretty good in the process.   It did take my mind off of my migraine.   

Wow! 23lbs? that's a big kitty! a doorstop cat 😃

[Scarlett45]

Looking for advice from this knowledgable dog group. I am looking to get Cosmo a new leash/collar. His is fine but very old (I am pretty sure this set belonged to Clancy, my godmother's dog who died in 2012). I know that the dog does not care, but I have to look at the dog, and be in public with the dog, so I want him to reflect my style. I also want something that will go with his seasonal/holiday bandanas (I already have a cute nautical one for him when June comes), but is masculine. Now he is a BIG BOY, but we are not out hiking, we are a "walk in the park" kind of duo.

I found this collar through Foggy Dog and my friend recommended Kurgo for a solid leash . Have you guys had experience with these brands? I also like the idea of a reflective leash so cars can see us when the time changes again. 

[ginger90]

1 hour ago, Scarlett45 said:

Looking for advice from this knowledgable dog group. I am looking to get Cosmo a new leash/collar. His is fine but very old (I am pretty sure this set belonged to Clancy, my godmother's dog who died in 2012). I know that the dog does not care, but I have to look at the dog, and be in public with the dog, so I want him to reflect my style. I also want something that will go with his seasonal/holiday bandanas (I already have a cute nautical one for him when June comes), but is masculine. Now he is a BIG BOY, but we are not out hiking, we are a "walk in the park" kind of duo.

I found this collar through Foggy Dog and my friend recommended Kurgo for a solid leash . Have you guys had experience with these brands? I also like the idea of a reflective leash so cars can see us when the time changes again. 

I always used a harness for our dog.  Personal preference, of course.

[Moose135]

We didn't get a Kurgo, but we do use one of those "hands-free" style with Jake when we go for walks and training sessions. It's easy to change lengths and configurations - the one we have has a couple of metal rings that let you vary how it is set up, and a loop in the lower part if you need to hold your dog close. Being able to keep him close without holding a leash is very handy. The trainer we work with recommended it, and we really like it.

Edited April 14, 2021 by Moose135

[Scarlett45]

1 hour ago, ginger90 said:

I always used a harness for our dog.  Personal preference, of course.

I’ve seen harnesses on smaller dogs, and I did get him a car harness for trips so that he could be hooked into a seat belt. Is there a reason you like harnesses more for walks?

[ginger90]

24 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I’ve seen harnesses on smaller dogs, and I did get him a car harness for trips so that he could be hooked into a seat belt. Is there a reason you like harnesses more for walks?

I felt more at ease with the harness. She also did much better on walks with it. She was never one to pull, and this will probably sound silly, but her gait while walking with the harness on was more “peppy”. I’d consider her to have been a medium sized dog.

[KnoxForPres]

@Scarlett45 I use upcountryinc.com.  They wear like iron and great when she’s rolled around in stuff not so great they come out looking brand new.

Knox has one with clouds and a dog with a scarf in a convertible repeating- I’ve bought a lot of collars and like them the best. I use a retractable leash.  If retractable isn’t allowed I have 2 heavy duty.- just bought at pet smart type places. 

Non related- Knox is 10 and is quite gray. The attention she now gets is 100X what she once did. People are like “a sweet grandmother” and used to be “I suspect there is pit in that mutt”.  She’s loving the attention :)

Edited April 17, 2021 by KnoxForPres

[luv2lurk]

On 4/9/2021 at 6:25 AM, Scout Finch said:

Has anyone dealt with their kitty having renal failure? My 14-year-old Willow was recently diagnosed and it's been difficult to communicate with the new vet, who has taken over the practice from the previous one who was so wonderful. Very difficult to get her on the phone. One of the primary things I'm worried about is that I know from two friends who have had cats with renal failure that they've suddenly died very horrible and painful deaths. Is this always the case? Does it only happen when their organs are shutting down? The vet assistant said there's nothing I can give Willow to hasten it and I asked only because the thought of her screaming in agony until I can get her to the emergency vet clinic to be euthanized is upsetting.

She's still eating but lately she's been more ravenous. Also the expected drinking lots of water and peeing a lot. They can't really say what stage she's in. She's so bony. 😞 When she started losing weight about a month and a half ago I thought it was probably due to hyperthyroidism which my previous two elderly cats had. At least that was controlled by medication and they lived to be 17 and 19, respectively. Nope. And no medication to control this with.

I've been playing veterinary diet food roulette and she likes Hills canned food but not the dry, did not like either form of Royal Canin, and now I'm trying her on the Purina NF. Just about to transition up to half that and half the regular Purina One she's been getting for a while. Just making sure she eats as much and as often as she wants is the most important thing. At the same time, trying to limit the big 22 lb. orange cat (that's Scout in the photo) because I can't really feed them separately. The higher-fat vet diet food is the last thing he needs!

 

Hi Scout. My cat (also a Tortie, but has a much more colourful face) was diagnosed with kidney failure a little over 4 years ago when she was 15 years old. At the time the vet told me she might live 1-2 years. Like you, I was dealing with a new vet who had taken over the practice from my former vet who had sadly passed away. And I also I thought my cat had hyperthyroidism. However the vet did prescribe a medication called Fortekor and warned me that the cat would have to take this pill for the rest of her life. She offered it in liquid form, but the cat hated that so now we just do the pill.

Notice the "now". My cat is still here at age 19. Every 6 months she goes for bloodwork. My vet says "we caught it early" when I remind her of the early fatal diagnosis. The blood work comes back at stable levels. (Hope I did not just jinx things, paws crossed)

My vet normally does not give values, but we had a conversation a couple of years ago  which when pressed she said the cat was in late Stage 2.  Interestingly last December she voluntarily gave me the values, maybe because the bloodwork had dropped (ie improved). So they do know the values, and stages, you just have to press.

I did have to change the cat's diet from dry food only to wet food only. She refused to eat any of the kidney prescription stuff from the vet, but loved the grocery store wet food. Until she developed an allergy (constantly throwing it up) So now she gets a wet food from a pet food specialty store which is higher in nutrition but not necessarily designated for kidney. Every cat is different so you will have to find what works for Willow, but I remember my old vet saying "As along as they eat, drink, pee and poop everything is OK".  I would add with Kidney cats, just make sure they eat and drink - the peeing will take care of itself (just be prepared to buy tons of cat litter).

As for sub-Qs we went through that stage a few months after the cat had the initial kidney diagnoses. What made me bring her to the vet was she was throwing up a foamy, cloudy, white, watery substance. I know the pull at the back of the neck is a classic check - I never saw it even when the vet did it. Anyway the vet did show me how to do sub-Qs. And as other posters have mentioned, I also watched plenty of YouTubes. I agree with other posters - go for the smaller needle, once in under the skin, a couple more minutes doesn't matter. I thought it was like the pills - for the rest of her life.  But after a year the vet and I agreed it was no longer necessary. (Back of my mind how much did the vet know about cat kidney disease at the beginning?)

I hope Willow has been diagnosed medication and my only other advice* is to seek an online source for the medication and/or sub-Q supplies when they are needed. Here in Canada the vet has to write a prescription for the meds (sub-Q supplies no prescription required) but I have been honest with her on what she charges vs what I can get online and she writes it for me.

*Apart from finding a responsive vet you trust to work with

 

 

[Bastet]

13 hours ago, luv2lurk said:

My vet normally does not give values, but we had a conversation a couple of years ago  which when pressed she said the cat was in late Stage 2.  Interestingly last December she voluntarily gave me the values, maybe because the bloodwork had dropped (ie improved). So they do know the values, and stages, you just have to press.

I'm rather taken aback by this.  My vet's office emails me all lab test results for me to review, and then the vet calls me and we go over them; this was also the case with my two previous vets (well, going back to the first, there was no email then, so it was us talking, the clinic mailing me a copy, and then me calling with any follow-up questions).  The notion of a vet refusing to disclose test results is disturbing.

The average owner needs help interpreting them, of course, but that's part of the vet's job.  And some owners may just say "It's all Greek to me" and decline to hear any numbers, simply wanting to know what's wrong and what they need to do.  But a default position of treating this information as secret unless pressed for it is troubling.

Edited April 17, 2021 by Bastet
I don't know how "taken" came out as "than", but it's fixed now

[theredhead77]

How do you wake two sleeping cats? 

Quietly go to the other side of the house to fold laundry.

[ginger90]

Elsie: (and one of my grandsons minus his head 😁)

[bosawks]

Best friends....

[Scarlett45]

Cosmo laughing in the sunshine this weekend.